


Conditionally, Not Under Specific Circumstances

by iris_14cheonsa



Series: dancing particles of light [2]
Category: Tensou Sentai Goseiger
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-24
Updated: 2018-09-24
Packaged: 2019-07-16 09:50:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16083632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iris_14cheonsa/pseuds/iris_14cheonsa
Summary: It was a four word recipe to disaster.





	Conditionally, Not Under Specific Circumstances

**Author's Note:**

  * For [zarahjoyce](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zarahjoyce/gifts).



> Requested by @zarahjoyce as part of a fic exchange  
> I got...invested, frankly since I haven't written Goseiger this much before and as I needed a break from four other drafts I've been working on + real life situations - like 5000+ words, that has to be a record for me in several hours of writing time  
> Well, sue me, I indulged in my Hyde/Moune feels like never before and they give a lot of dialogue somehow  
> Outfit descriptions were inspired by clothes their actor/actress has worn outside Goseiger *peace sign*

It began from something Moune insisted upon. Never suggested, offered, anything within the range of being given a choice on the matter.  _Insisted upon_  because somewhere between eleven in the morning to the time Nozomu came home from school, his hand was latched in a vice-like grip (worthy of a Landick) by Moune.

And of course it had to be Moune. Never Hyde, probably not Alata,  _definitely_  not Agri and surprisingly not Eri. For someone whose assigned colour was yellow rather than pink (though a book on flora suggests otherwise), Moune was enthusiastic about the nature of human love. Namely since out of the five who were introduced to it by a human admiring another human, Moune voluntarily researched into the matter. In other situations, Hyde would praise her;  _w_ _ould_  being the focus point if it proved useful in a later scenario. So far it's only made him the audience of several rants he can vaguely recall (something about love triangles - what did mathematics do with abstract concepts anyhow?) and now this...whatever it was.

"I'm dating Hyde, Nozomu," Moune cheerfully said, holding up their hands for all the room to see. Hyde  _might've_  heard a crack go off in Agri's neck as his head snapped up, incredulous.  _And with good reason._  Hyde focused on the amount of sweat gathering his palm.

 

* * *

 

"Please tell me why we're doing this...whatever it is," Hyde finished lamely, wiping his hands on a towel.

Moune huffed, placing her hands on his hips. Even at nineteen she was still short for her age and for a Landick. "Because I'm proving  _onii-chan_  a point."

Hyde raised an eyebrow, placing the towel on the table. "A point?"

"That I can pull off a relationship like any other human," she explained, picking up a DVD she had recently been adoring. Something about princes and coffee, if he could remember correctly. "He thinks I can't, but if a human can, I certainly can. No offence to Nozomu though," she hastily added. "He'll get all the girls swooning once he reaches high school."

"Where do you even learn these phrases..." Hyde muttered exasperatedly. He folded his arms and glared down at her. "Why are you asking  _me_  to do this?"

"Incest is wrong," Moune stated with a straight face.

"I know  _that_ ," Hyde spluttered, awkwardly moving his hands this way and that before finally folding them again. "Why not the professor?" Even he knew that was out of the question but he was desperate. No offence. "Or Alata? Maybe some regular human?"

"No to the professor, Alata isn't what I'm looking for and  _onii-chan_  will pummel a human with ease," Moune breezily listed off her fingers. "You're not the toughest but at least you can keep yourself from falling into a crack in the earth."

"Well, thank you."

"No problem," Moune brightly answered. "Now, you're going to do this with me or not?"

"How about no?"

Moune fixed her best glare on him. "You know, those water samples the other day haven't been looking that  _fresh_. Maybe I should get cleaning sometime today - "

"Deal," Hyde hastily said, sticking out his hand.

 

* * *

 

Whether it was humiliating or amusing to be congratulated by Alata...even Hyde didn't know what to make of it (Datas probably filled him in on what  _dating_ meant). He did exchange a brief smile with Moune though - before childishly refusing to look at her. No matter what her reasoning was, this was ridiculous.

"Congratulations, you two!" Alata cheerfully exclaimed. "I don't mind that you guys are doing this, but make sure our enemies don't take advantage of it."

"We won't," Moune smiled in gratitude, brown hair bobbing as she nodded. "We can do this. Right, Hyde?"

A deliberate look at the test tubes on the desk had him reeling. "O-Of course. We will keep our private business completely separate from our duties as the Earth's protectors."

Eri clapped her hands in delight, oblivious to the growing dark cloud about Agri. Hyde swallowed but maintained his stance. He was  _not_  going to lose his wit to a Landick's wrath, even though he had about two hours ago.

"Then let's celebrate!" Eri cheered, raising a hand in the air. "Let's go have some strawberry parfait!"

"That's a good idea!" Alata beamed, jumping up and down with her.

Moune snorted and Hyde had to agree with her.  _Skicks are so oblivious_.

 

* * *

 

Hyde was against this in every way possible but it wasn't in him to do a half-hearted job in Moune's plan. That is, if she had a plan. Hyde took it upon himself to spend a full night looking up on trivia (with help from Datas, who didn't probe at his sudden curiosity) and by the next morning, Moune just seated herself at the table when Hyde dumped a file onto the space in front of her.

Moune jumped in her seat and stared blankly at the offending item, stuffed with notes and charts and comparisons of every romantic trope Hyde could get his hands on. She opened it, the edge of the cover pinched between two fingers. "Uh, what is this?"

"That," Hyde pointed at his night's work, "is a guide I managed to create in the small time you've given me." Moune glared at him but Hyde brushed it off like a piece of dust. "If we are" - Hyde struggled with the word - "dating, then I intend to do a proper job of it."

"And that is?"

"First off," Hyde responded, "we need to wait a week."

"A  _week_?!"

"According to the data I've accumulated, that's the proper time needed for everyone to absorb the information that we're an "item", in human uses of the word. By then, Agri will" - hopefully - "become more accepting of the idea, and then we can go on a date. Until then," Hyde slid into the seat across from her, "we need to start small."

Moune let go of the cover and crossed her arms in disapproval. "Shouldn't the date take place today?"

"That's too soon."

"A week is way too long."

"It's not. You just need patience."

"Are you saying I don't have patience?"

A pause. "A little ill-tempered, but otherwise I think you can sustain a week's worth of waiting."

Moune pouted, a crisis potentially averted. "No fair." Then she brightened. "You know, those water samples - "

"- have been moved to a location you will never and perhaps ever find," Hyde supplied. He stretched out an arm on the tabletop, opening his palm. "Now, a week."

Sighing, Moune slapped her hand into his. "A week."

 

* * *

 

Surprisingly Agri hadn't damaged him in some form that morning. Other than a withering glance and a start at Hyde's direction (" _Onii-chan_ , I'll be going on a date with Hyde in a week" "Hyde!" "Down boy!"), he otherwise managed to keep his cool. Somewhat. Hyde was about to enter his bedroom when he caught sight of the door knob; the metal bent like a shrivelled prune. Attached to it was a yellow post-it, black ink printed in harsh letters on top. He took it and read the message.

_I've learnt what dating means from Eri. Thankfully you're not a 'playboy' but I'm keeping an eye on you. Don't do anything funny. I've been meaning to do moving target practice for a while. Watch it._

Hyde sighed, pocketing the note into his jacket pocket. This was unfair on his side of this. Luckily, the door knob was still functional and with a little push Hyde entered the bedroom.

 

* * *

 

Oddly enough, Alata didn't pounce on him the way Eri would whenever he entered the room since the news had been released. Then again, despite being a Skick, Alata had some knowledge of privacy and personal space Eri was unaware of.

Hyde was still thankful though. It kept him from feeling the budding anxiety forming in his stomach.

 

* * *

 

It was around three days when, following a battle, Hyde put stage one of the plan into the action. The battle hadn't been too burdensome - just some mooks and a stray general - so baring some dirt on their faces, they were fine. Perfect. So it was with relief and some anxiety that Hyde took Moune's hand into his. Startled, she let herself be dragged for a couple of metres (and judging by the silence, it seemed their team mates were equally stunned) before she stopped him with a hard kick at his foot.

"What are you doing?!" she hissed, ignoring Hyde's muffled noise of pain.

Trying to not bend over and rub his abused foot, Hyde responded accordingly. "Holding hands, of course."

"I know  _that_ ," she retorted, glancing at their hands. His hand was much larger than hers and somehow rougher, Hyde noted, though the size and texture was likely due to the height difference and gap in experience. "But why all of a sudden?"

Hyde sighed. "We are supposed to be a couple, aren't we?"

"Yeah?"

"So we need to do what couples do. So stage one, holding hands." Hyde looked down at her in suspicion. "Did you even read the plan I copied for you the other day."

Moune fidgeted, eyes suddenly downcast. "Uh, yes?"

"I'll take that as a no." Heaving another sigh - therefore supporting Moune's claims that he was an old man when he _wa_ _sn't_  - Hyde trudged along, Moune in tow. "Did you even have a plan when you started this prank?"

"It's not a prank and..." Looking back, Hyde saw that she had the grace to be embarrassed. "I just thought we needed to go on a date and then we'd be finished."

"Human relationships last longer than that," he uttered, turning back to watch his step. "And if the objective is to prove Agri wrong, then you'll need to wait another four days."

"Okay, I get it. Sorry about that."

Hyde shook his head in despair. "How can you be  _such_  a child?"

"Same goes for you, old man."

This time, Hyde just dug his other hand into his jacket pocket and fell silent.

 

* * *

 

It was the next morning that stage two took place. But this time, Hyde didn't have to be the one who commenced it. "Morning, Hyde!" Moune cheerfully called out, wrapping her arms around his. She tilted her head and smiled (he could see it was sincere) at his bedraggled appearance; hair sticking in directions and eyes squinting with sleep. "Did you have a good night's sleep?"

Hyde stifled a yawn, trying to remember what bestowed upon her to do this display of affection.  _Oh. Stage Two_. She must've read the plan after yesterday, he noted with surprise. "Yeah," he managed before a yawn took over. He scratched his head, a little too aware of the awed looks he was audience to - plus Data's incoherent series of beeps and a " _eh?!_ " mixed in for good measure. "And you?"

Moune blinked but quickly responded. "Yeah!" She shuffled her feet and awkwardly released his arm, going over to sit at the table. Thinking quickly, Hyde pulled out her chair and pushed it in the moment she seated herself.  _Stage three._  Moune looked up at him, offering a somewhat bewildered smile. "Thanks."

Hyde found himself giving a genuine smile of his own. "You're welcome."

(Agri seemed to have relaxed at that exchange, but Hyde didn't trust himself to lower his guard. The last time he had, Agri had managed to land a jab with his axe during their training session.

Hyde won by a small margin but he'd rather  _not_  nurse another violet bruise on his ribs again.)

 

* * *

 

Two days until the date. To his chagrin (or perhaps his denial), Hyde was growing nervous at the idea. Spending the whole day alone with Moune. Just Moune. Doing all those things couples do, as per the research he had done a week in advance - that wasn't in his capacity. It should be - he distinctly recalled moments that served as bonding exercises with her - but this was an entirely different matter altogether. He had overheard the girls chattering and at one point Eri offered to go shopping for a new dress; hence the flutter he uncomfortably felt revive in his stomach.

Getting a new article of clothing for a date was  _normal_  for first dates, he argued to himself, rummaging through the sparse contents of his closet. White pants, black shirts, white shirts, three pairs of leather boots; he never realized how identical his daily wear was. He huffed to himself, crossing his arms. It shouldn't bother him. Yes, it wasn't within him to do anything without his maximum effort (he let himself get wheeled around in a wheelbarrow of ice once), especially when this was a prank. They haven't even completed stage four yet -  _stage four_. He jerked his head. Only two days until the date and he still hadn't done stage four.

No matter. He marched over to the door and gave himself a nod of confidence. He'll do it tonight.

 

* * *

 

No. He couldn't do it tonight. It wasn't  _Hyde_  to do such a gesture. The last time he had, it was with a dying partner in his arms - actually, he might've helped Alata when he was on the ground and wounded all over. But that wasn't even a proper embrace, let alone this gesture of affection he was supposed to pull off.

But still, he had to try and he had the perfect opportunity.

It was now nighttime. They liked to gather in the main room, chatting for another few minutes before going to their respective rooms. Hyde had his own bedroom while the others shared rooms (despite the professor's confusion over the Skicks sharing a room, that was now in the past). The scenario was exactly like how Moune's favourite pieces of media went. He took a deep breath, walking towards her to stand in front of her. She looked up at him, clueless, before realizing  _stage four_. An odd shade of pink flourished uncharacteristically at the tips of her ears.

He...kind of regretted giving her a copy of the plan. But that was beyond his ability, to turn back time before any of this started. It was now or never. Hyde lifted his arms and moved them forward.  _Just put your arms around her - actually, putting your hands on her shoulders is also doable. Not too difficult_. Moune herself seemed to be holding her breath.  _Remember, this is stage four, which leads to a logical and linear conclusion that convinces other parties that two people are a couple. That is all -_

"What are you guys up to?" The moment was, needless to say, shattered, and Hyde had to bit the bottom of his lip before withdrawing his arms and turning to Eri, her smile as brilliant as ever. The innocence emitting from her eyes convinced him - and probably Moune, since she lowered her fists - to not do anything reckless or questionable. Skicks were oblivious, after all.

"Oh, nothing." Hyde answered as smoothly as he could. "Just, uh - "

"- Hyde was just going to ask me where I hid his water samples!" Moune blurted out, tinkling a (fake) laugh. Hyde was about to roll his eyes but then she took his hands and planted them on her shoulders, shaking herself front and back. "I took them out to the backyard but they spilled. That was stupid of me, sorry about that!"

Pushing down the fear cropping up in his mind about his precious water samples, Hyde laughed alongside her, eyes darting back and forth.

This was  _not_  how it was supposed to go, including the fake acting.

 

* * *

 

 _Did you really spill my water samples?_  he sent later that night.

A few seconds later, her reply came.  _Is that all you can think about?_  He could just see her huffing under the pile of blankets, hiding her new Earth phone's light from Agri's prying eyes.

He sent another message.  _Yes_.

_> :( Old man_

_Child_

_You hid them, didn't you? I've looked everywhere but I can't find them. That's Hyde for you_.

Hyde chuckled in amusement, relaxing his shoulders.  _Thank goodness._ He paused, contemplating his next message.  _Good night, Moune_ , he typed before pressing send. It took another minute for her response to come.

 _You and you're priorities. Good night_  
...  
_:)_

* _your priorities_

_That's Hyde for you, ruining a moment_

_Good spelling is essential_

_...._

**_Child has blocked you_ **

Hyde snorted, putting his phone back on the dresser. Typical.

(He finished step five before completing step four, but it was Hyde's fault for procrastinating in the first place. He'll have to make up for it.)

 

* * *

 

One day until the date. Before Hyde had even left his bedroom, Moune had already left the house, Eri in tow. That was a rarity and one that Hyde couldn't resist asking - "Where's Moune?" and after some thought, "and Eri?" to anyone remaining in the living room.

Alata looked up from the Rubix Cube he was playing with, a smile crinkling his eyes. "They went for a girls' day out. They won't be back until Nozomu comes home from school."

"And Datas?"

"Doing some maintenance. Apparently a Bugster virus got fed into his system so he's fixing it."

"I see." Hyde warily looked at the Landicks' bedroom door. "How - "

"- about Agri? Off on his morning run." Alata refocused on the Rubix Cube, his smile shifting to a confused frown. He twisted the puzzle sideways then vertically, trying to match the red side. "He decided to do his 300 kilometre run to burn off some steam. Probably won't be back until a day or two later."

Hyde let out a sigh. "I see," he repeated, a little uneasily. He shifted on his feet, wondering if he should be asking  _that_  to Alata. "Alata."

"Hm?"

"Can you accompany me?"

Alata glanced up. "Where?"

"For...some grocery shopping. And I have to see to a few errands."

Alata studied him for a minute and somehow Hyde felt colour rising up the back of his neck as a knowing smile matched the softness in Alata's eyes. "Sure. Let me finish this and we'll be on our way."

Relaxing, Hyde strode over and took the Rubix Cube from Alata. "Be ready in five," he informed him, turning the cube in his hands.

Alata stood up from the couch, stretching his limbs. "Gotcha."

By the time he came out from his bedroom, Hyde had already completed the Rubix Cube and placed it on the tabletop. Alata clapped his hands in admiration, his mouth forming an  _o_. "That's Hyde for you."

 

* * *

 

After completing the grocery shopping - they had a lot to stock up on this week so Hyde had reason to have Alata come - they sent their purchases back on a taxi. With hands now free of paper bags and a trolley, they proceeded to go about downtown. Hyde tried not to make it obvious that they were seeing clothing shops with increasing frequency, but it was difficult when more store ladies called out to the pair.

"You two are a handsome lot, try out our latest stock!"

"We have a clearance sale for men's clothing!"

"Try this, it really suits your complexion."

"We have some new leather jackets! They come in red, black, blue and green!"

Alata perked up at that one and would've bee lined to that store if not for Hyde grabbing his arm.

"Alata, focus," Hyde told him, making his own way to a display rack of blue clothing. He fingered through them, discarding the articles of clothing mentally.  _Too long, too weather inappropriate, too see-through, too short_  -

"Focus on what?" Alata inquired with a tilt to his head.

Hyde stared at a sweater too intently, testing the fabric against his fingers. "Just thought I needed some new clothes."

Alata smiled and went over to admire a mannequin bearing a red shirt. "For your fake date with Moune?"

Hyde stopped and looked at him. "...you knew?" Alata chuckled and tapped his ear.  _Of course_. "I should've taken your hearing into account," Hyde murmured, berating himself for overlooking one variable. "Have you told anyone?"

Alata shook his head. "Why would I? I'd be ruining Moune's plan if I did. And you two are having fun, so that's all that matters."

"We're - "

"- having fun," Alata corrected him, striding over to the rack. He peered through the clothing, lips pursed in concentration. "Maybe we can try white? You suit it as much as blue."

Hyde lowered his head, smiling to himself. "Thanks."

 

* * *

 

In the end he bought almost everything except the shoes. "Your usual boots will do," Alata said, skipping with their purchases in bags. He had also gotten himself a soft white cardigan of his own; Hyde could already see Eri snatching it and Alata compiling without hesitation. "We'll just polish them with that stuff the professor has, and then you'll be ready for tomorrow."

Hyde chuckled, walking at a steadier pace. "You're into this more than I am."

"I can't help it." Alata raised his head to look at the skies. "I bet tomorrow will be a good day. In a lot of ways."

 _So much for Skicks being oblivious_.

 

* * *

 

When the girls had returned, Hyde had hidden the clothes in the closet and was sitting at the table, enjoying a fresh brew of tea. Eri swept in like a breeze, singing "we're home" as she placed two plastic bags on the table. Moune followed in soon after, hands full with three paper bags. Without thinking, Hyde stepped forward to relieve her of some of them, despite her protests.

Alata turned in his seat to beam up at them. "Welcome home." He pushed a plate with a slice of cake closer to where Eri was. "Me and Hyde did" - Hyde looked up - "some grocery shopping. We even got strawberry cake." Hyde relaxed (this week has not been good for him) and stepped away from Moune.

Eri cheered in delight. "Thanks!" Seating herself immediately, she speared some cake on her fork and put it in her mouth. Her eyes widened and she smiled broadly. "This is so good! Moune, you should have some too!"

"I'll do that after I put everything away," Moune answered, walking off to her room. As if remembering something, she turned to Hyde. "Oh, those are Eri's. You can - uh - Eri?"

Eri waved a hand. "You can put them on the couch, Hyde."

Nodding, Hyde strode to the living room and carefully put the bags on the coffee table. Putting them on the couch increased the chance of them getting crinkled, after all. He brushed his hands together to dust off invisible dust and -  _oh_.

 _Step six. Carrying items for the girlfriend_.

When thought about  _positively_  it bared him another stage to complete when tomorrow arrived and - yes, it was bothering him that this wasn't following a linear course of action. Hyde stifled a sigh and turned around, seeing Moune joining Alata and Eri to partake in cake.

He only had to wait for tomorrow to end.

 

 

* * *

 

Out of everything that could happen, he couldn't sleep tonight. He had tossed left and right, even trying to sleep with his head at the foot of the bed (Nozomu testified it was a workable solution) but his eyes were still wide awake. Hyde sat up, ruffling his hair, and looked at the outfit he had hung on the closet's door. Tomorrow - or rather today, as the clock read  _12:32 AM_  - was stage seven. Somehow he had to shoehorn in stage four (the end of the date seemed plausible) and enjoy his outing with Moune. The latter wasn't impossible as he made it in his mind but the chances were, if he didn't relish it, Moune would probably be dissatisfied and request for another date.

That idea...didn't seem so bad.

 

* * *

 

Date day. Hyde had managed to keep it together for most of the morning (Agri being absent helped elevate the matter) and even managed to smile when Moune did her "stage two greeting". But he had neglected to note that today was a weekend so Nozomu chose to not to go to his cram school and lingered about the living room, obviously wanting to witness...this.

Thankfully, Hyde had considered this variable while drawing out his plan. In order for stage seven to work, he needed to leave the house exactly one hour and fifteen minutes before Moune came. When she arrived he'd supply "I just got here" when really, it had been an hour. (He didn't write that detail in Moune's copy, however.) But he needed to do it  _without_  Nozomu, Alata or Eri in sight.

"Nozomu," Hyde stated, lowering his cup of tea. "I looked through our fridge and we're lacking on some supplies. Given that you don't have studies you need to attend to, can you go shopping for groceries?"

Nozomu started, darting a glance back from Alata to Hyde. "But didn't - "

"Nozomu-kun!" Alata broke in, clasping his hands on Nozomu's small shoulders. "Take me with you. I think I'd like to get some strawberries."

Nozomu looked out the window. "At this time in the year?"

"Don't they have strawberries in spring time?"

"Maybe but - "

"Let's go!" Eri rose up and pulled at Nozomu's hands. "We can get the ingredients for a cake while we're at it!"

"But Hyde and - "

"Let's also get some juice too, Eri."

"A - "

"See you later, Hyde!" She even  _winked_  and - oh the saints, she  _knew._

"Wait - "

The door slammed behind the trio; one variable taken care of. Exhaling hard to regain his senses, Hyde picked up his cup again, willing himself to stop shaking.

 

* * *

 

There was a hindrance though. Hyde had taken longer than usual to get ready ("why does hair have to take so much time?" Hyde questioned himself as he ran the straighteners through his hair) and by the time Moune had arrived, Hyde had only waited for forty five minutes, as per his watch.

He scowled at himself, flicking one end of his new navy scarf over his shoulder. Hyde turned around, fixing a small smile on his face. "Moune."

"Sorry I'm late," was the first thing Moune breathed, panting and slightly hunched over. Hyde raised his eyebrows. Contrary to his assumptions she  _wasn't_  wearing yellow but a soft black sweater and a long white skirt with a sheer layer on top. Her hair was free of its natural curls and hung over her shoulders. She straightened, twisting the strap of an amber handbag over her shoulder.

"It's fine," he recited as per the plan. "I - "

"- just got here when really, it was an hour ago."  _Actually forty five minutes and three seconds_. Moune smoothed her hair, hands almost completely covered by her sleeves baring her fingers. "I've seen more romance than you have, Hyde."

He couldn't argue with that. Taking one step back, feeling conspicuous in black pants and a long white shirt with  _no_ leather blue jacket, Hyde offered a tentative hand. "Shall we?"

Moune nodded, accepting the offer - by putting her handbag into his hand. "It's manners for a man to carry things for a lady," she stated, starting to walk forward.

Hyde stared incredulously at her backside before shaking his head. At least she didn't call him an old man. "Well you're no lady yourself - "

"That's rich coming from a Seaick."

"Same for a Landick."

"Let's just go."

 

* * *

 

As Alata had predicted, the afternoon was rather splendid. They managed to make their way to a restaurant with no kicks to the calves, thankfully, and now seated themselves at a table by the window side. Hyde had insisted on nothing else. "If I'm doing this date properly," he stated again, tugging the sleeves of his long white shirt to his elbows, "I'm doing it by the book of a perfect date."

Moune rolled her eyes but a smile burst itself on her lips anyway.

 

* * *

 

But what Alata had  _not_  predicted was that, following their dinner, rain had begun to fall in small droplets as they walked to the park. Hyde thought it'd do no harm and so did Moune, as she brushed the water off her sweater lazily. A downpour shattered that idea. Putting his hands above his head, Hyde looked around the surrounding area before finding a pavilion. Grabbing Moune's hand, he yelled "over there!" and immediately ran down the path as fast as he could.

"The weather said nothing about this!" Moune practically screamed, hair sticking to her face.

 _Note to self: never take Alata's predictions completely to heart and take the precaution of carrying an umbrella_. Hyde managed to go up the stairs of the pavilion and, upon releasing Moune's hand, started brushing the excess water off his partially exposed arms. He considered his factor would happen and yet -

"Guess your guide wasn't that good after all," Moune coughed, brushing her hair out of her face. She tugged at her sweater. "Gross. And I just got this yesterday."

"Same here," Hyde grimly replied, looking out into the rain. A twinge of guilt followed when he realized Nozomu, Alata and Eri had gone out. Hopefully they weren't caught in the rain.

As if reading his thoughts, Moune placed a hand on his arm. "Don't worry. Before I went out, those three were already in the living room."

Hyde breathed out in relief. "Thank goodness." They stood in silence, watching the rain pouring down and trickling off the nearby plants. On reflection, it wasn't so terrible, baring their drenched state.

The Seaicks were surrounded by the water the heavens provided to the Earth; meaning that there were waterfalls and hovering bubbles of water everywhere they went. Hyde had been stunned, upon coming to Earth, that people generally stayed  _away_  from water unless it was for leisure, and even then water was limited to rivers, ponds, the seas, oceans and occasional waterfalls. He missed hearing the sound of water that trickled and fell wherever he went, though he never shared that with anyone baring Magis.

So seeing the heavens pouring this much rain, hearing it patter on the pavilion's rooftop, seeing how  _clear_ the water was...it really was beautiful.  _Guess Alata's predictions weren't that far off_ , Hyde drily thought, closing his eyes. "Moune."

"Hm?"

"Today...was fun," he admitted. "Actually, this week, as crazy as it was, was not as bad as I made it out to be. I owe you an apology."

Moune smiled softly, shifting closer and carefully leaning her head so it rested on his shoulder.  _Stage four_. "No need for that. I...didn't really give you a choice, anyway."

"Then we're even," Hyde chuckled. "And looks like we finished all seven stages, while we were at it."

A pause. "You know..." Hyde opened his eyes to look at the crown of brown hair. "It's March, right?"

Hyde thought for a moment. "March 29th. Why are you asking?"

"On Earth, they have a tradition called 'April Fools'. A lot of people play pranks that day like the one we're doing." Moune raised her head to look up at him, mischief twinkling in her brown eyes. It complemented the raindrops on the ends of her eyelashes. "How about we do this 'fake dating' until then?"

Hyde raised an eyebrow. "I haven't thought this far into our plan."

"I didn't either." Moune lowered her eyes and laughed. "I was just trying to get a date with you."

"...you're such a child."

"Not so bad yourself, old man."


End file.
